Gorillas and Giraffes and Family, Oh My! (By Mari, Sammy, and Ilna)
by ilna
Summary: DJ enjoys his first family trip to the zoo. Part 4 of the 6th Annual McRoll in the REAL World Thanksgiving Marathon.


**Notes:** Readers and REAL McRollers - Thank you for your amazing support! It is always appreciated!

**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

_Gorillas and Giraffes and Family, Oh My! (A McRoll in the REAL World Story by Mari, Sammy, and Ilna)_

DJ made a beeline for Aaron as soon as he spotted him in the zoo parking lot.

"Guess what?" He said as he bounced on the balls of his feet.

Aaron knelt in front of him. "What?"

"Mrs. Longo said I can live with Steve and Catherine and Angie _forever_." DJ's excitement was tinged with disbelief that something he wanted so badly was actually going to happen.

"That's fantastic." Aaron held up his hand and DJ gave him a high five. "Welcome to the family."

"We're gonna tell everyone at Thanksgiving dinner but Steve and Catherine said it was ok if I tell you early. You need to keep it a secret, though, ok?"

"I will," Aaron promised, smiling as he mentally calculated the chances that either Steve or Catherine, or possibly both, would spill the news early.

* * *

"Ami-nals, ami-nals, see a' da ami-nals…" Angie chanted happily as she rode on Steve's shoulders and DJ walked close by holding Catherine's hand.

"What's your favorite animal?" Kaitlyn asked DJ from her position on his other side. "It's really hard for me to pick. They're all special in their own way, but I think it's cats and then the sloth. The sloth is so beautiful, wait till you see her. Her name is Cinnamon and I got to hold her once."

"I like the tigers best so far." DJ smiled up at the soft spoken girl who told him an interesting fact about each animal they'd seen. "I've never been to a zoo, it's really cool."

"Isn't it? And our zoo is a good one," Kaitlyn explained. She'd been doing a lot of reading about the history of zoos since she'd started contemplating a possible future as a veterinarian. "Some zoos, especially back in the old days, weren't nice to the animals, but a lot of good people worked very hard to fix it so the animals are happier."

"People who love animals and want them to be protected and well cared for just like Kaitlyn," Catherine interjected and the preteen beamed.

"Thank you!" She turned back to the boy at her side. "They're still working hard because there are still things that need fixed but we're getting there. You know, animals need to have big areas to live and the right food, friends, and even toys to make sure they're happy."

Catherine shared a smile with Steve. The little girl who was intimidated by Cammie five years before now loved all animals so much she happily told the others about the conservation efforts of certified zoological parks and how they actually helped animals who were unable to live in the wild by providing care and even breeding for endangered species.

DJ had taken to her right away and her quiet confidence when talking about one of her favorite subjects had him asking questions about the animals and the zoo itself.

"Do you come a lot?" he asked.

"I wish I could come more, but I try to come whenever I can. When I'm fourteen I'm definitely gonna volunteer as a junior zookeeper. Then maybe when I'm sixteen I can apply for a part-time job." Her eyes glowed at the prospect.

"She may have to pick up elephant poop," Jacob announced and grinned when DJ burst into laughter. "And Kaitlyn wouldn't even care. She'd totally do it, 'cause she loves animals that much."

"That's right," she confirmed shaking her head and grinning back at her brother. "I don't think that'd be part of my job, but I wouldn't care if it was. Imagine getting close enough to touch an elephant!"

"Kaitlyn was a vet for Halloween," Jacob added.

"My Aunt Lyssa's a _veterinarian_," Joan said proudly. "She helped with Kaitlyn's costume."

Kaitlyn nodded. "She's so nice, she did a remote lesson for my class and she sent me the whole outfit, I just wore my own shirt and a plastic stethoscope. My cat Midnight told me I looked very professional," she joked.

"Your cat is a boy like Gizmo, right?" DJ asked.

"Yeah. He's the sweetest cat ever. Wait till you meet him, everyone loves him."

The little boy's head swiveled to look up at Catherine. "Can I?"

"Of course," she said with a smile. "Midnight will love that. You can get him a new toy. Something green." She grinned at Kaitlyn. "Green is Midnight's favorite color."

"It really is!" Kaitlyn beamed, happy that Catherine remembered.

"Daddy, see the 'G'owilla!" Angie bounced and patted Steve's head.

"I guess it's gorilla time," Steve said with a chuckle. "Angie knows the layout of the zoo and she usually tells us what's next." He winked at DJ who smiled in response.

"And that one gorilla really likes Uncle Steve," Kaityln giggled at the story Catherine had relayed after an earlier visit to the zoo.

"You, too?" Steve dropped his head to his chest and sighed. "C'mon, there's a baby gorilla that's Angie's age, let's go see what she's up to."

* * *

"Danno, see!" Angie pointed to the giraffes.

Danny lifted his goddaughter and pointed. "Just like your rocking one. Can you tell Joan and DJ what he's called?

"Gee-waff!" she said in a decidedly outdoor voice. "Joanie, DJ, gee-waff! Ah de big! Sooo big!" She stretched her arms up to demonstrate.

"He's really big." Joan nodded. "You're so smart, Cousin Angie." She clapped and Angie followed suit.

"You're super smart," DJ agreed. "You know all the animals." He clapped along with the girls because it made Angie giggle. "And he does look just like your rocking giraffe."

"Can we go to the petting zoo next, Uncle Steve?" Joan turned from where she was walking ahead, one hand in Mary's, the other holding Kaitlyn's.

"What do you think, DJ?" Mary smiled. "Wanna go pet the goats and ponies?"

"We can pet them?"

"You can even feed them. They have treats we can get from the junior zookeepers. They eat right out of your hand," Jacob explained.

"Only if you want to," Kaitlyn added. "If you'd rather just pet them, that's totally okay."

"I wanna feed them," DJ bubbled. "I never saw a pony in person." He reached for Steve's hand. "You'll feed them, too, right?"

Catherine smiled when Danny, who was still carrying Angie, placed his free hand on her shoulder when Steve grinned broadly at DJ and answered, "Absolutely, I can't wait."

* * *

"Cheetahs are the fastest animals," Jacob said as he and DJ leaned on the fence outside of the Cheetah Habitat. "They can run 60 miles per hour. That's almost as fast as a car on the highway!"

"Whoa, really?" DJ said, turning to look back at the three cats lounging in the shade. "They don't look very fast."

"Well, they don't have to chase their food here. But in the wild they do. I read about 'em in a Zoobooks magazine. I got it at the library Friends Shop for a quarter!"

"A quarter? Wow."

"Yeah, I'll show you. It's got lots of awesome pictures. I'll bring it for Thanksgiving. Unless I forget. Oh! And cheetahs are the only big cats that can't roar. I read that, too."

DJ blinked at the speed at which words flowed out of Jacob's mouth. He'd been excited to meet the older boy and was thrilled that a fifth grader wanted to talk to him.

"Do you like to read?" Jacob asked.

DJ nodded, then stopped. "I mean, I like looking at books. I can't really read yet."

"You're in first grade, right?"

"I don't go to school right now, but I'm gonna go after Christmas. Steve and Catherine said."

"Oh! My brother said you went to my school! It's the best. Are you gonna go there again?"

"Yeah. I met my teacher. She's Ms. … um, Ms. …" He frowned. "I forgot her name."

"Aunt Catherine!" Jacob called out, turning to look around for her. "What's DJ's teacher's name?"

"Someone you know very well," Catherine said and winked. "Ms. Lane."

Jacob gasped and turned back to DJ. "Ms. Lane! She's the best! I had her for first grade and second grade and third grade! She said she liked our class so much she wanted to keep teaching us."

"She was really nice," DJ said.

"She is," Jacob said authoritatively. "You're gonna love her."

"But before I go to school I have to learn from Elizabeth. So I guess she's gonna be my teacher for now."

"_Aunt Elizabeth_? That's awesome. She helps me with my homework every Wednesday. She explains things really good. She never gets mad when I don't understand."

DJ sighed with relief. "Good."

"And I can help you, too, if you want."

DJ smiled excitedly. "Yeah!"

Catherine, who had wandered closer after Jacob asked her about DJ's teacher, said, "You know what would be super helpful, Jacob? Since you've been going there for five years, you can tell DJ everything he needs to know about your school. He went there for kindergarten, but it's been a little while and a lot has changed since then."

"Oh yeah!" Jacob said, eyes brightening with the idea. "There's a new gym teacher _and_ a new art teacher. Plus now we have STEM!"

"Stem? What's stem?" DJ asked. "Like a flower stem?"

"No, it means Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math," Jacob explained. He laughed. "Actually, we did do a project with flowers last month. But the best is when we get to make slime!"

DJ's eyes widened. "Slime?"

Catherine smiled as Jacob excitedly explained the different kinds of slime experiments they'd done this school year. She had no doubt that having Jacob as a friend and mentor would make DJ's transition back to school even smoother.

* * *

"See you later for the sleepover!" Joan said, waving emphatically to Angie and DJ as she walked with Mary and Aaron to their rental car.

"Swee'o'er!" Angie echoed excitedly.

"We'll drop her off right before dinner?" Mary asked.

"Perfect," Steve said, holding DJ's hand as they stood in the parking lot. Angie was on DJ's other side, with Catherine holding her other hand, the budding family all in a row.

"And we're still on for tomorrow's bake-off, right, Aaron?" Kaitlyn asked, pausing outside Joseph and Elizabeth's vehicle with Jacob.

"Totally," he replied. "I hope you've got a good recipe because I scoured the cookbooks _and_ the internet for a killer dessert."

"He's not kidding," Mary said. "He's been researching for a solid month."

Kaitlyn grinned. "I'm not worried."

Aaron laughed. "Oh ho ho, listen to that confidence!" He grinned back at her. "That'll make it all the more satisfying when I win."

"I don't know, Uncle Aaron," Jacob said. "Kaitlyn's is really good. Especially when she puts extra cinnam–"

"Jacob, shh!" Kaitlyn cut him. "It's a surprise, remember?"

Jacob clapped a hand over his mouth, causing DJ and Angie to giggle.

"Jay-cup si'wy," Angie said.

"Well, I'm ready to be an official judge," Danny said. "Just remember my pineapple allergy."

"You don't have a pineapple allergy," Steve said. "You just don't like it."

"You don't like pineapple?" DJ asked, eyes widening. "But it's so good."

"Ah, DJ, my name buddy, there we will have to agree to disagree."

"I promise, no pineapple," Kaitlyn said.

"I make no such promise," Aaron said, winking at DJ who grinned.

"All right, Joanie, we'll see you later," Steve said. "Everyone else, tomorrow for the bakeoff."

Rounds of good-byes were exchanged, and Steve, Catherine, Angie, and DJ headed for the truck. Catherine lifted Angie to take her around to the passenger side while Steve opened the rear driver's side door and helped DJ up into his booster seat.

"There you go, buddy," he said, securing the belt in place. He looked over to see Catherine doing the same with Angie and stopped, the sudden thought going through his head that he was now a man with two car seats in his vehicle. He smiled, realizing he felt nothing but joy at the thought. He caught Catherine's eye and could tell by her matching smile that she knew exactly what he was thinking.

With a final tug on DJ's belt, he smiled, nodding resolutely. "Let's go home."

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! Join us tomorrow and every day from now until December 1st for a new story!**

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